Dust off the passport for World Tourism Day

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HOUSTON, Tx. -– Some people don’t have much say in where they go for their next trip away from home, like Syrian refugees living in Turkey.

Other folks get to do lots of neat things they can write home about, like riding the rails down the side of a mountain, or learning the finer points about a different culture through dancing and singing.

The United Nations would like more people to get up and get out. And so it declared September 27 World Tourism Day.

The World Tourist Organization tells us that despite wars, terrorism, and deadly viruses, international travel is on the rise. More than half-a-billion people took off on trips in the first six months of the year. That’s up more than 4.5 percent over last year.

Of course, this is also the opening of the new session of the UN General Assembly, when the world’s leaders leave their countries and come to the United States.